I wouldn't want to be in her shoes dealing with all of this!! She wants her son to be happy I am sure, but perhaps she wishes he wasn't so selfish!!

How is marrying somebody that he's loved for thirty years selfish? If he wasn't royalty it wouldn't even be a question! Charles has waited many years for to finally be able to marry Camilla whom he obviously loves very much. What is so selfish about him wanting to be happy? When the Queen was young and she fell in love with Prince Phillip she insisted that she marry him despite her father attempting to distract her and have her marry somebody else. Finally her father realized that in order for her to be a good Queen and deal with all the stress and such she needed somebody that she loved. Prince Charles deserves the same.

For the reasons you state in your post. He's a whiny, selfish, self-absorbed, out-of-touch, extravegent whinger who often doesn't know what he's talking about, but can't keep his mouth shut.

Being King requires making sacrifices and thinking of country & the monarchy as an institution before oneself. Charles seems incapable of that. Additionallt, his wife is completely inappropriate consort material. Sure he may "love" her, but he has more than himself to think about. They've both harmed the monarchy, and to be honest, I'm not sure how anyone can look up to such a woman. She may be mistress material, but she's certainly not royal consort material, IMO.

Do you think she'd have been royal consort material she and Charles had married in the 1970s? It seems as though the biggest barriers against her were her less than virginal past and the fact that her family wasn't in the higher echelons of aristocracy. She shares a lot of the royal family's interests and values, however.

I must say I agree with a lot of your criticisms of Charles; I hope he understands the constitutional role of being monarch (as opposed to heir) well enough to back off from the political meddling. There's a wealth of difference between giving experienced-based advice to ministers and trying to push a social agenda.

When I read Mabell Airlie's book about her life, which included some long extracts about her years as lady in waiting to Queen Mary, I was struck by what she said about Prince Albert (later George VI) when Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon first refused his proposal of marriage. She said what a shame it was and how much she liked him and that he was man who would be made or marred by his wife. Obviously he was made by his, but looking at the way Charles turned out it's occurred to me that the same hold true for him and that he was marred by his choice of wife.

The fact that he married someone with whom he couldn't grow and develop together seems to have brought out the worst in him over the years. It sounded as though Diana could see many of his problems but that she approached them as though she was criticising him, which made him get defensive and criticise her in return. If they'd only had some sort of basis of mutual respect, it would have been a lot healthier.

Well, Charles and Camilla did have an 'affair' that lasted for over 30 years. Why should they have waited? They certainly put their own spouses thru something didn't they - so why should they not have just gotten it done and over with?

Andrew and Camilla had an open marriage. He seems to have had some success with the ladies during their marriage. I think the hurt feelings arose when all this popped up in the media, instead of being a discreet secret within certain circles.

Charles has no choice in the matter. It's his duty under the law to become King, barring the Government forcing him to abdicate, as it did with Edward VIII. Since the Government approved his marriage to Camilla, there is no question on being forced to renounce his place in the line of succession in favor of William. This is why the Queen finally agreed to the marriage. She wanted this critical question addressed before her death.

Barring a surprise illness or accident, the Queen's health remains excellent and she will reign until her death. That does not mean, however, she will continue to carry out her heavy schedule of traveling and duties forever. She will gradually lessen her load, while allowing Charles and Prince William to stand-in for her as she ages.

It doesn't matter what anyone thinks because this is not a popularity contest. A monarchy is above all of that, provided it continues with the consent of the people.

How is marrying somebody that he's loved for thirty years selfish? If he wasn't royalty it wouldn't even be a question! Charles has waited many years for to finally be able to marry Camilla whom he obviously loves very much. What is so selfish about him wanting to be happy? When the Queen was young and she fell in love with Prince Phillip she insisted that she marry him despite her father attempting to distract her and have her marry somebody else. Finally her father realized that in order for her to be a good Queen and deal with all the stress and such she needed somebody that she loved. Prince Charles deserves the same.

Well he is royalty so this is a question. You point out yourself that E II was brave enough to stand for the man she loved. Why Charles couldn't show such poise? Even now that they are wed, Charles still doesn't totally stand for Camilla (the PR stunt saying she won't be Queen - how insulting). IMO that shows a lack of character, and Camilla does nothing to push him in another direction. As a matter of fact, even friends say that she's more or less saying amen to whatever he does.
Also, Camilla said she did not want to be Queen during the engagement period. What nonsence! If she did not want to be Queen, the safest move would have been not marrying the heir to the throne. Some poster praise her sense of duty but truly, I think she is committed to Charles not to the throne (annoying for a future Queen). Anyway, Charles' reign, if ever, will be pretty short, so I'm not really concerned about the ultimate issue.

But maybe they'll surprise me (through I do believe you can change at 20, maybe at 30, but at their age, I don't believe they will change).

For the reasons you state in your post. He's a whiny, selfish, self-absorbed, out-of-touch, extravegent whinger who often doesn't know what he's talking about, but can't keep his mouth shut.

Being King requires making sacrifices and thinking of country & the monarchy as an institution before oneself. Charles seems incapable of that. Additionallt, his wife is completely inappropriate consort material. Sure he may "love" her, but he has more than himself to think about. They've both harmed the monarchy, and to be honest, I'm not sure how anyone can look up to such a woman. She may be mistress material, but she's certainly not royal consort material, IMO.

Sean, Kudos to you!!!!! You have guts stating that among the Camilla supporters!!

For the reasons you state in your post. He's a whiny, selfish, self-absorbed, out-of-touch, extravegent whinger who often doesn't know what he's talking about, but can't keep his mouth shut.

Being King requires making sacrifices and thinking of country & the monarchy as an institution before oneself. Charles seems incapable of that. Additionallt, his wife is completely inappropriate consort material. Sure he may "love" her, but he has more than himself to think about. They've both harmed the monarchy, and to be honest, I'm not sure how anyone can look up to such a woman. She may be mistress material, but she's certainly not royal consort material, IMO.

Well, it does not matter much, Camilla is his wife and as he becomes king, she will have a title that is befitting her role. I think Prince Charles will do a good job as king:)

There's no reason for him to not be king....the throne has to be passed fairly!...Just because Will is handsome, kind, and looked like he would be a better king than his dad and the U.K. favors him more than Charles doesn't mean he has to be king right now!

__________________runaway princessThe One who got away......Royals Rule!!!!!!!They make the best husbands!!!!!!

IMO Prince Charles will be so old when Queen Elizabeth II dies (I hope she lives for Many-Many years. I admire her very much) that I really think the new King will be William.

We have no way of knowing what the Universe has in store. If the Queen lives another twenty years, then Charles will be close to 80 when he becomes King, the same approximate age the Queen is now. Assuming his health is good, his reign would be short, but could last twenty years or so.

If Prince Charles lives past his mother, he will be king. He is already preparing, with his mummy's guidence of course. William isn't ready to be king, he will need to learn the ropes better as the second in line. Prince Charles would freak if he was skipped over!

__________________"The pain of spending a week with my brother is well worth it."
– Prince William, on joining Prince Harry for a charity motorcycle ride across South Africa

Being King requires making sacrifices and thinking of country & the monarchy as an institution before oneself. Charles seems incapable of that. Additionallt, his wife is completely inappropriate consort material. Sure he may "love" her, but he has more than himself to think about. They've both harmed the monarchy, and to be honest, I'm not sure how anyone can look up to such a woman. She may be mistress material, but she's certainly not royal consort material, IMO.